#NoCrossNoCrown

Luke 9:23-27

Luke 9:23–27 CSB

23 Then he said to them all, “If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow me. 24 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me will save it. 25 For what does it benefit someone if he gains the whole world, and yet loses or forfeits himself? 26 For whoever is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his glory and that of the Father and the holy angels. 27 Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God.”

Luke 9:23–27 The Message

23 Then he told them what they could expect for themselves: “Anyone who intends to come with me has to let me lead. You’re not in the driver’s seat—I am. Don’t run from suffering; embrace it. Follow me and I’ll show you how. 24 Self-help is no help at all. Self-sacrifice is the way, my way, to finding yourself, your true self. 25 What good would it do to get everything you want and lose you, the real you? 26 If any of you is embarrassed with me and the way I’m leading you, know that the Son of Man will be far more embarrassed with you when he arrives in all his splendor in company with the Father and the holy angels. This isn’t, you realize, pie in the sky by and by. 27 Some who have taken their stand right here are going to see it happen, see with their own eyes the kingdom of God.”

Introduction

My brothers and sisters my Christian friends as we shift our attention to the celebration of Christ resurrection I sought the Lord on what to share with you. I thought about how we could use this time to draw people to our church to hear the gospel message. My mind thought about "catchy" or "culturally recognizable" themes but my spirit drew me to a conversation I had with Pastor Nickleson a few years ago when he had me preach for our Sunrise fellowship. Humbled but nervous by the opportunity I asked a silly question. After he asked me to bring the word I asked "What should I preach?" I know he wanted laugh I could tell but he simply smirked but with a serious face he said "The Cross".

My task was to figure out how to teach the people how to get to the victory at Calvary.

I would like to contend to you today that there is no victory at Calvary without the cross.

Society doesn't teach us that. From the day we are born we are taught to pursue a crown, but Jesus point us to the cross.

Cultural Sucess vs. Christian Success

Luke 9:25 CSB

25 For what does it benefit someone if he gains the whole world, and yet loses or forfeits himself?

Luke 9:25 The Message

25 What good would it do to get everything you want and lose you, the real you?

There are a lot of people with a lot of stuff but they still feel lost.

Jesus is better!/Just give me Jesus.

You can't grasp Jesus without understanding the cross.

Background

New Testament 9:18–27—The Cost of Following the Real Messiah

9:23–25. The cross was an instrument of violent and painful execution. To “take the cross” was to carry the horizontal beam (the patibulum) of the cross out to the site of execution, usually past a jeering mob. In rhetorically strong terms, Jesus describes what all true disciples must be ready for: if they follow him, they must be ready to face literal scorn on the road to eventual martyrdom, for they must follow to the cross. From the moment of faith believers must count their lives forfeit for the kingdom.

Jesus has been traveling with the disciples for sometime now and they are witnessing Jesus do some amazing things.

They realize by walking with Jesus that there's something different about walking with Jesus.

Jesus after feeding the 5,000 he questioned the disciples to see that after these years of following him do they have a revelation of who he is yet.

Luke 9:18–20 CSB

18 While he was praying in private and his disciples were with him, he asked them, “Who do the crowds say that I am?” 19 They answered, “John the Baptist; others, Elijah; still others, that one of the ancient prophets has come back.” 20 “But you,” he asked them, “who do you say that I am?” Peter answered, “God’s Messiah.”

“And it happened, as He was alone praying, that His disciples joined Him, and He asked them, saying, “Who do the crowds say that I am?” So they answered and said, “John the Baptist, but some say Elijah; and others say that one of the old prophets has risen again.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered and said, “The Christ of God.”

There is a cost to true discipleship.

Verse 23 - “Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.”

The Tony Evans Study Bible Chapter 9

9:23 To deny yourself is to place Jesus’s glory ahead of your own. Taking up your cross daily is a clear allusion to crucifixion. As people condemned to it were required to carry their crosses to the place of execution, true disciples must daily submit to Christ’s authority over their lives—even to the point of suffering and death. To follow King Jesus is to live according to God’s comprehensive rule over every area of life.

Take up your cross daily.

The cross was not the jewelry we were to celebrate Resurrection Sunday, but it literary point us to death.

Persians are accredited with first using cruxifixion to put its criminals today but the Romans to this form of execution

It was used as a way to humiliate and torture those that had been charged with a crime.

It was a process that could last days. You were put on display so that those that had judged you could see you hang in persecution.

Why would anyone willingly do that?

Some of you are saying "I'd rather chase the crown."

I would like to contend today that there is no crown without the cross.

Jesus is literally saying that we must die to ourselves if we are going to follow him.

Unknown to them Christ is warning them of the persecution he would soon face; and the target that would be on our back if we choose to follow him. However I won't leave you discouraged today but I would like to tell you that if we would die to ourselves we can really live one day.

The Tony Evans Study Bible Chapter 9

9:24–25 In God’s economy, true profit comes from giving away your life for God’s purposes. Those who strive after this world’s power, wealth, success, and values to the neglect of their spiritual lives will forfeit their experience of God’s reality now and his kingdom reward at Christ’s return (9:25).

Main Idea

Many times people who were executed on a cross were stripped naked and beaten before crowds of people. As many of us have done all we can to achieve cultural success life has a way of beating us down and stripping us of all of our efforts. I want to present a trade to you today. Trade in your crown for the cross.

Sermonic Points

Represents our Sin

We are all living lives that are the result of one event. Your whole life experience can be traced back to one event.

The Fall/Adamaic sin

Imputed or passed down to all of us.

It is true that none of us are perfect for the Bible says in

Romans 3:23

“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”

We are all guilty of sin.

It doesn't matter how you look, where you come from or how you cover it up in here. ALL

So it don't make since for you to turn your nose up at anybody else.

Yours stinks too.

It was custom in Roman culture that those that were found guilty would be condemned to a cross.

We all deserve a cross for our trespasses. Paul says in Romans 7:21 "When I try to do right, evil is always present." (Give examples)

I may not have given your example but you know what it is. We all sin differently.

Even those of us that are saved. We may act like we got it all together. I came to tell the Holier than thou folks "ain't no need of judging me. You may sin less but you aren't sinless"

The cross teaches us we need to repent.

Jesus first sermon was "Repent, for the kingdom of God is near."

Repentance is the key to the kingdom.

If we are going to follow Jesus we first need to deny ourselves and repent. Im guilty!

Represents our Sentence

In order to be place on a cross you had to be charged with a crime.

Once you had been formally charged and tried you were ordered to die on the cross.

The decision that a man or woman made could cause them to hang in humiliating fashion so that the community could see.

They were literally put to death for breaking the law.

If we would be honest today many of us have broken God's law. I didn't come to sell you a cheap form of grace today but I want to point out that we all have stuff in our life that would have landed us on a cross for Paul says in Romans 6:23 that "The wages of sin is death."

I'll be honest today and say ive written some checks in my life with my son that I couldn't cash but I do realize if it had not been for Christ on the cross I should be dead. I should be on my way to hell. I at least be somewhere going out of my mind but because of the power of the cross I can praise God today because he didn't let my sentence lead me to eternal death.

So when you ought to share your story with somebody that what I deserved he didn't let it take me out!

Represents our Salvation

It was Christ redemptive work at the cross that removed the penalty of our sin.

Romans 6:10 CSB

10 For the death he died, he died to sin once for all time; but the life he lives, he lives to God.

- For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God.

I lot of people have preached the cross wrong. Cheap forms of grace will lead you to believe that if we are believers we are Greek from the cross but back up to

because it says

“Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him,”

‭‭(illustrate on the cross) "Covered on the cross"

He happened for me at the cross.